winter time

Winter time in Michigan can be so fun, but can also make for long days. Heading outside in the cold and snow can be quite a chore. I tend to leave the outdoor activities for Ryan & I do more of the indoor ones :)

 Ryan taking both kids outside for fun in the snow

We do lots of coloring these days and since Andrew loves fans it only makes sense to color fans

Sylvia's first candy cane.

The kids and I headed to Breton Village to look at the train display, eat cookies, listen to a book reading, and look at fish

The train display was great.  Andrew enjoyed it a bit more than Sylvia

Looking at the giant gold fish and making wishes while throwing pennies

Christmas tree cookie

ditto

After a book reading at Pooh's Corner, the kids had fun playing at the train table.

Back home, the house is so cold Sylvia must resort to wearing Andrew's underwear on her head :)

this and that

Sylvia LOVES to read books.  Of course she has her favorites:  Barnyard Dance, Snuggle Puppy, The very Busy Spider, and The very Hungry Caterpillar.  Almost all of them involve an animal of some sort.  She has also been singing and ton.  You can often hear her singing Twinkle Twinkle or Itsy Bitsy Spider.  It makes me smile every time.

Ok, so I have just discovered how easy it is to make play-doh, especially if you have a Kitchen Aid mixer.  So Andrew and I made Christmas play-doh:  add green food coloring, peppermint scent, and glitter of course!

Enjoying the fruits of our labor :)

These kids sure do love 'their' new 'toy', otherwise known as Dada's new smart phone.  Goodness!

Andrew enjoying the snow with his Dad

Look at that smile!

Funny, sweet, helpful Andrew

I sure do love this sweet boy. He is so cautious about many things, but also so helpful, fun, silly, smart, and eager to please. And there is something about 'new' things that bring out the best in my dear son.

 We purchased a new vacuum and suddenly he wants to help :)

Look at this new face, Mom!

...and this one too!

Fresh, new snow on the ground so it's time to shovel.

dress up

Maybe you have gathered from past blog posts that my dear Sylvia loves to dress up and accessorize. These photos are proof of that.

A dress 4 sizes too big but so stinkin' cute!

She hiked up her dress to fit on this car.

She has her pom-poms, two cell phones, purse, graham cracker, and favorite book.  Ready for a night on the town :)

Oh, and the sunglasses!

Thanksgiving 2013

We were extremely spoiled this Thanksgiving to have so many members of my family visit. My brother Matt came into town from Chicago, and my sister Sara came all the way from Texas with her family. We had a blast. I am especially thankful for a niece and nephew who entertained my children so well :)

Just plain cute!

Andrew sledding with his cousins. 

These next few photos are courtesy of my brother.  Doesn't he do a great job?  He did have a cute subject though ;)